In Sermon Illustrations: "Witness Let It Show"

Famous Firsts

Contributed by Bob Gillchrest on Dec 1, 2008

FAMOUS FIRSTS Let me share with you some of famous firsts that have happened throughout history. Virginia Dare 1587 --- 1st child born in the American colonies, on August 18th, on what is now Roanoke Island, North Carolina. André-Jacques Garnerin 1797 --- 1st parachute jump. Dropped from about ...read more

Tags: Goals

Denomination: Baptist

A Light Of Hope  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jan 5, 2009

A Light of Hope There is a story about how the caverns north of Yellowstone National Park were discovered. As the story goes, one of the original explorers was walking along the top of that mountain and fell through a hole, and he dropped down several hundred feet into this cavern and was stuck in ...read more

Scripture: John 8:12, Isaiah 9:1-2, Matthew 4:14-16

Tags: Evangelism The Lost

Not Any ...

Contributed by Alan Kraft on Jan 8, 2009

NOT ANY EXPERIENCE Doug Roberts, a contributor to Glamour magazine, once wrote: "One of the things I love about [porn] is that it’s sex with anybody I want: Halle Berry, the weather woman, the blond who brushed against me on the subway...I can summon any one or two of these ladies for a romp ...read more

Tags: Pornography

Denomination: Evangelical Free

From Wm. Barclay's Commentary: One Of The Great ...

Contributed by Bobby Scobey on Apr 8, 2009

From Wm. Barclay’s commentary: One of the great stories of the Christian Church is that of Telemachus. He was a hermit of the desert, but the call of God told him he must go to Rome. Rome was nominally Christian, but still the gladiatorial games went on. Men fought with other and crowds roared with ...read more

Tags: Reformation

Denomination: Pentecostal

A Man Who Practiced The Presence Of ...

Contributed by K. Edward Skidmore on Sep 2, 2009

A man who practiced the presence of Christ: Frank Laubach, was born in the United States. At the age of 45, while working as a missionary in the Philippines, Frank Laubach dedicated himself to the practice of abiding constantly in the presence of Christ. During the remaining 40 years of his ...read more

Tags: Prayer, Prayer Persistence

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

Hymn Story: Precious Lord, Take My Hand By Thomas ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Nov 1, 2009

Hymn Story: Precious Lord, Take My Hand by Thomas Dorsey Thomas Dorsey was a black jazz musician from Atlanta who was known in the early 1920’s for the suggestive lyrics he combined with original music. Then God touched his life and in 1926 he gave up the suggestive music and began to write ...read more

Scripture: 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18

Tags: Death

They Are Who We Thought They Were

Contributed by Timothy Dolan on Nov 10, 2009

THEY ARE WHO WE THOUGHT THEY WERE How many have heard the apparently new cliché: "They are who we thought they were"? "Normally quiet Arizona Cardinals coach Dennis Green first uttered this trademarked phrase during a swear-filled, post-game tirade in 2006. When he was asked what he thought of ...read more

Tags: Apologetics Jesus

Denomination: Baptist

Grace Never Loses Its ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Nov 20, 2009

Grace Never Loses Its Value A well-known speaker started off his seminar by holding up a $20 bill. In the room of 200, he asked, “Who would like this $20 bill?” Hands started going up. He said, “I am going to give this $20 to one of you but first, let me do this.” He proceeded to crumple the ...read more

Scripture: Romans 3:21-26

Tags: Grace, Covenant Of Grace

Two Choices: The Real God Or A False God, Richard ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Nov 22, 2009

Two Choices: The real God or a false god, Richard Lovelace on How Some Churches Want Ministers To Protect Them from the Real God Richard Lovelace wrote: "The whole church was...avoiding the biblical portrait of the sovereign and holy God who was angry with the wicked every day and whose anger ...read more

Scripture: Deuteronomy 30:15-20

Tags: Idolatry

My Parents Had A Grapevine In The Backyard. They ...

Contributed by Sean Harder on Dec 4, 2009

My parents had a grapevine in the backyard. They just let it grow and some of the branches grew up and intertwined around this big evergreen tree about 20 feet in the air, others grew through the cedar hedge that was beside it. Some of these branches must have been forty feet long, but they never ...read more

Tags: Discipleship

Shoe Repair Receipt Submitted After 20 ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jan 1, 2010

Shoe Repair Receipt Submitted After 20 Years Many years ago, the L.A. Times carried a story about a man who went to the house where he grew up and knocked on the door. It had been 20 years since he lived there, so he grew a little sentimental. He asked the current owners if he could walk through ...read more

Scripture: 2 Thessalonians 3:10

Tags: Workplace

Roots: Freedom From Your Slavery

Contributed by Gregg Bitter on Jan 25, 2010

Roots: Freedom From Your Slavery Kunta Kinte lived free among the Mandinka people of West Africa, becoming a Mandinka warrior at fifteen. But then as he gathered wood for a drum outside his village, slavers captured him. Stacked away on a slave ship piled up with a hundred seventy other slaves, he ...read more

Tags: Guilt

Denomination: Lutheran

On Nimrod And Super Heroes

Contributed by Ross Cochrane on Feb 12, 2010

ON NIMROD AND SUPER HEROES My grandson loves super heroes. He has videos of "Ben Ten" He stands there and with a big voice declares "I am Tahmongasaur!" (I think he means to say "Humongasaur" but you can't correct a three-year-old). Humongousaur is strong enough to bench press a pickup truck. Half ...read more

Tags: Heroism

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Tougher Pastures

Contributed by Curry Pikkaart on Mar 2, 2010

TOUGHER PASTURES For our own good God will not let us stay too comfortable! As unlikely as it sounds, the birth of a giraffe teaches us a similar lesson. When a baby giraffe is born it drops 10 feet to the ground and lands on its back. Within seconds, it rolls to an upright position with its ...read more

Tags: Affliction

Denomination: Presbyterian/Reformed

Inheritance

Contributed by Ross Cochrane on Mar 9, 2010

INHERITANCE WHEN MY DAD DIED, I INHERITED A TAP COLLECTION! Brass taps! I’ve never heard of someone who collects taps. Every shape and variety of brass taps. They were too heavy to put them in my suitcase so I placed them in a carry-on-bag as I went to the airport. My bag was taken through the ...read more

Tags: God's Provision

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Hannibal The Great Was A Carthaginian Military ...

Contributed by Jeremy Lane on May 15, 2010

Hannibal the great was a Carthaginian military commander around the year 200 B.C. He is thought of as one of the great military leaders of all time, alongside Alexander the Great, Napoleon, and others. There is a story that says as a boy Hannibal begged his father to take him to a war overseas. ...read more

Tags: Happiness, Fighting

Denomination: Independent/Bible

Burma Shave And The Church  PRO

Contributed by Ed Sasnett on Jun 15, 2010

BURMA-SHAVE AND THE CHURCH Dan Betzer told about the old Burma Shave commercials alongside the roadside. Some of you remember how advertisers would use several well-placed slogans on signs to promote their product. Burma Shave was famous for their billboard advertisements. For example, one ...read more

Tags: Discipleship

Denomination: Baptist

Thoughts On Discipleship By Willard, Stott, And ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Oct 23, 2010

THOUGHTS ON DISCIPLESHIP by Willard, Stott, and Warren Dallas Willard in his book "Divine Conspiracy" states: "....discipleship is real-life apprenticeship to Jesus." If we are students of Jesus then we must be with him. If I am an apprentice, a disciple, that means I must be with him to learn ...read more

Scripture: Luke 14:25-35

Tags: Discipleship

As A Pastor I Learned A Valuable Lesson Early In ...

Contributed by Kelly Benton on Nov 10, 2010

Early in my ministry, I learned a hard but necessary lesson. I was deeply concerned about offending people in the congregation. I carefully guarded my words, avoiding anything that might make someone uncomfortable or rub them the wrong way. Part of that came from fear—fear that if I preached tough, ...read more

Scripture: Galatians 1:10

Tags: Preaching, Pleasing The Father

Denomination: Other

Ortberg On God's Presence

Contributed by Michael Mccartney on Mar 7, 2011

ORTBERG ON GOD'S PRESENCE John Ortberg’s quote about God’s Presence: "Now let us bring God into the picture. The reality with God is that we are never speaking or acting in his absence. The psalmist said, 'Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? If I go to the ...read more

Tags: God's Omnipotence

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational